Any experience with the severe S-1 as a coastal blasting bump & jump sail or is it a pure wave sail? Not many reviews of the 2020-2022 sails to go on as it seems the blade gets most coverage.
Im tempted to update a series of Gators to the S-1 (3,7-5,3) to pair with my 82l wave and 95l FSW boards. Used primarily in choppy coastal conditions and wind swell.
Thinking they would be more maneuverable, great for jumping and suit the trifin boards well. Everyone locally seems to go with the Blade, but I hear the S-1 can be just as good for these conditions,
any tips?
cheers
Hi Norwaysail ....
Tricky one .... I have sets of both , absolutely love the blade 3.7/4.0/4.2/4.5 for fast DTL sailing / side off .... they can handle extremes on both top and bottom end really well .... Also love the s1 in smaller sizes .... for me they become 'better' than blade in the 4.6 / 4.8 / 5.0 / 5.2 sizes - they sit a bit looser on the mast , and (for me ) have a nicer feel for wave tricks etc .and maybe ? feel a fraction lighter than similar size blade in bigger sizes ... Blades start feeling a little 'too' stable / surefooted in 5.0 and above ..... imo .... but all small differences ...... if you are a manouvre sailor , and like trying lots of moves - maybe go s1 ,
if you are more looking for charging / blasting / gybing - go blade ..... If you sail lots of flucutating winds / frontal /rainy squalls going through .... go blade , if you like to 'undersize' rig , and winds bit more settled - go s1 .....
But really , both are great .... my 3.7 - 4.5 blades are just 'no brainers' ...... can take evrything , s1 maybe need bit more care trim and size choice - and in their sweet spot are unreal ....
I have 2020 blades and 2021 s-1s, imo blades are better for b&j and blasting, s-1s are better for wave riding and probably doing tricks (?, not there yet).
S-1 has more back hand pressure, more twitchy, a little less mast foot pressure, still handles gusts very well (not the lulls). Bigger and more powerful/efficient pumping when unhooked and trying to catch a wave while non planing. You need to constantly make small adjustments to sail position and back hand pressure while blasting in straight line to go fast, and it feels like it has less top speed. Very good for dtl wave riding as you can move the sail around depowered and get instant power when you need.
Blade has very little back hand pressure, i guess this is what the reviews mean by "natural feel", you get the full power constantly (power comes smoother too) just from leaning with harness, sail is more stable in position, control in air after jumping is less effort and smoother, keeps power while jibing for speedy exits.
I think blades would be better for your spot, constant and smooth power delivery over choppy b&j conditions makes it more fun, but if you do wave riding or do tricks s-1 maybe, not night and difference at the end they are both great sails.
I run Blades from 4m to 5.3m and i have a S-1 in a 5.6m, my 5.0m 5.3m and 5.6m are pro models
As the guys said above the blades plant your board to the water a bit more and tend to have more grunt through the holes in the wind. The S-1 have a longer boom length so are a bit more responsive to back hand movements and also have a much lighter feel being 4 batten sails, i find it better than the blades for the light wind wave stuff, i find the 5.7m blades feel a little heavy in your hands but have heaps of power, sometimes to much and feel like they will drive your mast base through the bottom of your board ??
the blades have always been my favourite sails and the do work awesome for bump n jump stuff, the 5.0m blade are absolute favourite sails.
I have the S-1s because they are better for wave riding in onshore conditions.
This is really about the apparent wind in different wave conditions. If you sail in wind that is cross-shore to the wave, or cross-off, then you get the wind increase as you go down the line and you need to dump power - and the Blades are best for that.
But in onshore conditions you often lose wind power as you go down the lane and the S-1s tend to help in that situation, delivering constant power and being less top-end orientated. The S-1s also give you a bit more back hand feel to crank the turns - or more 'response'. With the S-1 you can also tweak the feel with minor alterations to downhaul and outhaul.
Despite all this detail, you can still use the S-1s for general use and blasting about! I love my 2022 versions!
The Blades are also slightly more forward-pulling and so that, along with their more neutral feel, makes them popular for general blasting and perhaps better for jumping on the way out. The extra batten is probably also useful in the larger, 5m+ sizes.
The Pro Blades vary a bit from the standard Blades in that they have a bit more power for the equivalent size.
I haven't tried the Pro S-1s recently but I understand they feel much the same as the standard ones, in terms of power delivery.
Select to expand quoteBasher said..
I have the S-1s because they are better for wave riding in onshore conditions.
This is really about the apparent wind in different wave conditions. If you sail in wind that is cross-shore to the wave, or cross-off, then you get the wind increase as you go down the line and you need to dump power - and the Blades are best for that.
But in onshore conditions you often lose wind power as you go down the lane and the S-1s tend to help in that situation, delivering constant power and being less top-end orientated. The S-1s also give you a bit more back hand feel to crank the turns - or more 'response'. With the S-1 you can also tweak the feel with minor alterations to downhaul and outhaul.
Despite all this detail, you can still use the S-1s for general use and blasting about! I love my 2022 versions!
The Blades are also slightly more forward-pulling and so that, along with their more neutral feel, makes them popular for general blasting and perhaps better for jumping on the way out. The extra batten is probably also useful in the larger, 5m+ sizes.
The Pro Blades vary a bit from the standard Blades in that they have a bit more power for the equivalent size.
I haven't tried the Pro S-1s recently but I understand they feel much the same as the standard ones, in terms of power delivery.
Thank you, I'm a mediocre wave sailor at best but this was a really good explanation of how cross/onshore conditions and sail selection matter.
